Homage to Luther Burbank

Ah, nectarines at last!

I love most fruits - one of the reasons I so enjoy California is simply the length of the strawberry season - but, oh, I do rejoice when the nectarines come into the market.

Like all fruit, if you can't smell the aroma from five feet away, it's probably not worth buying. I've seen nectarines in the market for a couple of weeks or more but until they entice from afar, I resist their colorful blandishments.

Wrapped in prosciutto, they make a splendid appetizer and nothing could be simpler to make. The salty shock of the ham followed by the sweet flood of nectarine may not be heaven, but you can see it from there.

Did you know that we live right close to where Luther Burbank did his many plant experiments, one of which gave us the wonderful nectarine? Just up Route 101 in Sonoma County, you can visit the actual house and garden where he lived and worked. It's a great spot when the fog rolls in to San Francisco on the very day you had hoped for an outdoor picnic. Instead of pulling on long pants and a sweatshirt and shivering in the fog, buy some richly scented nectarines, put on your shorts, and head up to Santa Rosa to pay homage to Mr. Burbank.